As the sun sets over Rittenhouse Square, and a clear, crisp night envelops the city, take a few minutes to stop and gaze upward from the usual hustle and bustle of the streets. Look beyond the skyscrapers, the shadowy rooftops and the tip of Liberty Place. Is that an unusually bright star in the moonlit sky? Maybe not. It could be the planet Jupiter.

“In the city, the sky is usually not as clear and dark,” notes Milton Friedman, MD, president of the Rittenhouse Astronomical Society. “People can live in Rittenhouse Square their whole lives and not know what is above them or what they are looking at in the night skies, for example, Jupiter.”

The Rittenhouse Astronomical Society, founded in 1888, is a local organization devoted to de-mystifying many questions people have about astronomy and the study of the universe. As one of the oldest organizations of its type in America, its members meet to share information, answer questions and provide insight to students, average citizens, curious stargazers or amateur astronomers of all ages.

“We try to get people interested in science and astronomy, especially young people,” says Friedman, of Abington and a family-physician at Jeanes Hospital in Northeast Philadelphia. “We discuss lots of topics like whether or not there are people elsewhere in the universe or where light originates from.”

Since 1931, the group has met at the Franklin Institute. It is named in honor of David Rittenhouse, Philadelphia’s answer to Copernicus and Galileo. “David Rittenhouse did so much for Philadelphia. We owe a lot to him. He was way ahead of his time,” notes Friedman.

The Square’s Visionary Namesake David Rittenhouse was a leading 18th century American astronomer, inventor, mathematician, surveyor and patriot. In 1825, Philadelphia honored Rittenhouse by renaming “Southwest Square,” one of William Penn’s five original squares, to “Rittenhouse Square.”
Rittenhouse was born in 1732 in the Germantown section of Philadelphia, in a village called Paper Mill Run near the Wissahickon Creek. His grandfather, William Rittenhouse, is recognized for building the first paper mill in America.

David Rittenhouse, who worked as a clockmaker, was an extraordinary, self-taught intellectual with a remarkable list of accomplishments. He built one of the first telescopes used in the United States, served as President of the American Philosophical Society, Director of the U.S. Mint, Treasurer of Pennsylvania, City Surveyor of Philadelphia, he is often noted for his work on the Mason Dixon Line, and earned honorary degrees from the Colleges of New Jersey and Philadelphia (now known as Ivy-league rivals, Penn and Princeton). At Penn, he was a professor of astronomy, a vice-provost and university trustee.

Penn and Princeton both have original “Rittenhouse Orreries,” or mechanical models of the solar system built by Rittenhouse. In addition, Drexel University has a Rittenhouse clock, called the “Chippendale Astronomical Clock,” circa 1793, on display. Donated as a gift in 1894, this clock is considered to be America’s most important clock.

David Rittenhouse and other astronomical pioneers have fascinated people since the beginning of time. Today, the Rittenhouse Astronomical Society hosts many modern-day innovators making a difference in our universe – from Sally Ride, the first American woman in space to Brother Guy, a Jesuit and the Vatican’s astronomer.

The Society also provides community services and practical information. “Our members are available after meetings to answer questions. Sometimes, people are interested in buying a telescope and ask what they should get. We often tell people to buy binoculars before a telescope or to get an inexpensive one. You can find some planets, like Jupiter, with binoculars,” says Friedman.

On the second Wednesday of each month at 7:30 p.m., the Rittenhouse Astronomical Society invites anyone interested in astronomy to the Fels Planetarium at the Franklin Institute for an out-of-this-world presentation. Weather permitting, the group also has the opportunity to get a glimpse of the stars through the newly rebuilt Zeiss telescope in the Joel N. Bloom Observatory on the Institute’s fourth-floor rooftop.

From September through June, the Society offers speakers and educational programs. The next meeting is September 26, 2007, featuring Dr. Robert Nemiroff, an astrophysicist and creator of the popular web site Astronomy Picture of the Day, www.apod.nasa.gov The meetings are free and open to the public.

“We scan the group and look for new faces and make everyone feel at home. At our meetings, we’re all interested in astronomy but in the daytime, we’re in all kinds of different professions” says Friedman. “Our meetings are enjoyable for anyone. We discuss what’s currently in the night skies and what to expect in upcoming months,” notes Friedman.

For more information visit: www.rittenhouseastronomicalsociety.org